Current Legal News

Stay current with legal news in Tennessee. This page features the latest news for and about the Tennessee legal community, either produced by the Tennessee Bar Association or collected from news sources.

Dale Thomas, a partner in the law firm of Rainey, Kizer, Reviere & Bell PLC, will succeed John Burleson to become the firm’s next president Jan. 1, the Memphis Daily News reports. Thomas has been associated with Rainey Kizer since graduating with honors from the University of Tennessee College of Law in 1988.

The death of former TBA President Donald F. Paine early Monday morning (Nov. 18) brought out many thoughts and memories from those in the Tennessee legal community who had worked with him, learned from him, served under his leadership at the TBA in 1986-1987, or had just benefitted from his friendship.

The TBA Criminal Justice Section is presenting a program that offers an advanced analysis of the practice of criminal law. This Dec. 6 program in Nashville will provide insight into psychological evaluations and competency testing for juveniles and adults, with special consideration given to cases involving sex crimes. The program also will discuss how to deal with a handwriting expert during trial. Find out more or register now.

The newest member of the Clarksville District Attorney’s office is a docile, black Lab, whose presence often calms children and other victims of rape and sexual assault. The Leaf Chronicle introduces us to Orson, a 2-year-old black lab/golden retriever mix that was specifically bred and trained from birth to serve those with special needs.

Transparency advocates are worried that a recent Tennessee appeals court ruling might keep many documents secret from the public, the Chattanooga Times Free Press reports. The decision upheld a lower court's ruling that then-Gov. Phil Bredesen's administration was justified in denying the release of records on the basis that they were part of the "deliberative process" about how to deal with demonstrators encamped at the state capitol in 2005 to protest TennCare cuts. "Now that it has been recognized, every public official, starting at the lowest level and running to the top can say, 'Oh, you can't find out what was going on, that's part of the deliberative process privilege,'" Tennessee Press Association attorney Rick Hollow said.

Longtime Bradley County attorney Bill Brown tells the Cleveland Daily Banner that he is running in the Republican primary for 10th Judicial District Circuit Court Judge, Part 3. The seat is currently held by Judge Carroll Ross, who is retiring on Aug. 31, 2014. The 10th Judicial District covers Bradley, McMinn, Polk and Monroe counties. The judicial post traditionally has heard only criminal cases.

Georgia and Auburn went head to head in one of the most exciting games of the week on Saturday, but both before and after the action ended, the players were all on the same team. A federal judge on Nov. 8 declared a case brought by the nonprofit National College Players Association as a class action, meaning that all Division I men's basketball players and bowl-subdivision football players are suing the NCAA unless they opt out. If they win, they will receive a slice of college sports revenue, including profits from broadcast rights contracts. Read more from Barrons.

Memorial services will be held Saturday for Chattanooga attorney and Miller & Martin partner James Guy Beatty Jr., who died Nov. 12 after a long illness. He was 82. A graduate of the University of Florida and the Emory University School of Law, Beatty served as corporate secretary of the Navarre Corp., Chattanooga Times Printing Company, Olan Mills Inc. and Coca-Cola Enterprises Inc. He also served as director of the Krystal Company, Brock Candy Company, Volunteer State Life Insurance Company, Chubb Life Insurance Company, Chattanooga ChooChoo Company and numerous other corporations. He was a member of the Tennessee Board of Law Examiners and chair of the board of directors for the National Conference of Bar Examiners. The Chattanoogan.com reports that services will be at the Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd on Lookout Mountain at 11 a.m. on Saturday. Members of the family will receive friends at the church’s Talbird Hall prior to the service at 10 a.m.

Memphis Law School’s National Moot Court team of Chelsea Harris and Courtney Sharp reached the finals in regional competition this past weekend in Knoxville and qualified for the national finals in New York this February. After defeating the Mississippi College of Law, Louisiana State and the University of Tennessee, the team is among 30 to qualify for nationals.

Tennessee today joined 36 other states in an agreement with Google that will send $17 million to the states and the District of Columbia. At issue between the states and Google were allegations that the company had issued misleading advice regarding privacy settings on some Safari web browsers, which allowed Google to operate user tracking devices without users' knowledge. Read more from the Tennessee Attorney General's office.

Former Jasper city attorney Paul DeWitt Kelly Jr. died Saturday (Nov. 16). He was 86. A graduate of Vanderbilt University and its law school, Kelly was a descendant of Alexander Kelly, one of the founders of the state of Tennessee. He practiced law in Jasper as both a solo practitioner and a partner in Kelly and Kelly Attorneys, where he remained of counsel after his retirement. Kelly was active in the profession, serving as a member of the Tennessee Bar Association, the Tennessee Bar Foundation and Marion County Bar Association, which he also led as president. A private burial was to be held at Forest Hills Cemetery today. A memorial service will be held Tuesday at 3 p.m. at the Church of the Good Shepherd. A reception will follow, the Chattanoogan reports.

Knoxville attorney Donald F. Paine died early Monday morning (Nov. 18). He was 74. A former president of both the Knoxville and Tennessee Bar Associations, Paine also was a founder of the Tennessee Law Institute and a well-known speaker and author. He was a founding member of the Tennessee Bar Journal Editorial Board and wrote a monthly column for the magazine, "Paine on Procedure," since 1989. A graduate of the University of Tennessee College of Law, Paine was of counsel with the firm of Paine, Tarwater, and Bickers LLP. Among awards he had received were the Knoxville Bar Barristers Law and Liberty Award, the Knoxville Bar Association Pro Bono Award, the Tennessee Bar Association Pro Bono Award and the Chancellor's Award from the University of Tennessee. He is the only adjunct faculty member to receive that award.

Regions Bank’s $2.7 million award from defendant DeVille Corp. tops the list of the Nashville Business Journal’s five largest litigation judgments awarded in Nashville during the past year. View a slideshow of the other judgments on the Business Journal website.

Nashville attorney John E. Clemmons today was sentenced to 18 years in prison after entering his guilty plea to three counts of theft, perjury and TennCare fraud. Clemmons admitted to stealing more than $1 million from clients for whom he had been appointed conservator. Under the plea agreement he could be eligible for parole after serving about five years and four months. Absent the plea deal, Clemmons could have faced jail terms of up to 30 years on the theft counts alone, the Tennessean reports.

A plaintiff’s attorney is crying foul after Pilot Flying J reimbursed his client for an apparent rebate discrepancy, and added only 4 percent interest to the total, Knoxnews reports. Under a proposed settlement deal with several plaintiffs who sued in federal court over an alleged diesel fuel rebate fraud, the Knoxville-based truck stop chain agreed to pay 100 percent of losses plus six percent interest and attorney’s fees. Pilot, though, said today the procedure is the same one it has used for all customers who have received reimbursements.

M. Josiah Hoover III was suspended on Nov. 15 for one year to run concurrently with his disbarment on Nov. 16, 2012. Hoover charged a client excessive fees and practiced law while his license was suspended for failing to pay the Professional Privilege Tax. The full BPR notice has more.

Pamela Williams Kelly of the Law Offices of Pamela Kelly received the Celebrate Pro Bono Award from the Memphis Bar Association's Access to Justice Committee and the Memphis Area Legal Services (MALS) Pro Bono Project. Kelly was honored for her work on extended cases on behalf of indigent clients through the clinics offered by MALS. She also works with the Community Legal Center, Online Tennessee Justice and the Nashville-based Volunteer Lawyers for Professionals and the Arts. As an accredited attorney for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, she also provides pro bono representation for veterans, the Memphis Daily News reports.

Attorney Judy Smith, former press aide to President George H. W. Bush and the inspiration behind the hit ABC television show “Scandal,” will visit Chattanooga on Feb. 4 to deliver the keynote at the Bessie Smith Cultural Center’s Anniversary Luncheon. Tables are now available for purchase, along with a limited number of tickets for general seating, the Chattanoogan reports.

The parents of murder victims Channon Christian and Chris Newsom are advocating for changes in the law regarding drug screening for judges, WATE New 6 reports. The people convicted in the killings were granted new trials after it was revealed that the judge in the original case, Richard Baumgartner, was addicted to painkillers and pleaded guilty to official misconduct. "For somebody that is in charge and controls something as important as our justice system, I think they should be susceptible to a drug screening," said Gary Christian.